Health News Roundup: Japan PM Kishida calls for doubling booster shots to 1 million a day; Vietnam starts reopening schools after year-long pandemic closure and more

The latest tally marks an increase of more than 100,000 U.S. COVID-19 fatalities since Dec. 12, coinciding with a surge of infections and hospitalizations driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant of the virus. Japan to consider early approval for Shionogi COVID pill, says PM Kishida Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday the government would consider granting conditional early approval for the oral COVID-19 treatment being developed by Shionogi & Co Ltd. Kishida told a televised parliamentary committee meeting that provided the drug's safety and efficacy are confirmed by clinical trials "we would like to review it promptly".

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Japan PM Kishida calls for doubling booster shots to 1 million a day

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday he wants to speed up the country's COVID-19 booster shot program to 1 million shots a day by the end of the month, about double the current pace. Kishida told a televised parliamentary budget committee meeting that he has instructed ministers to work with local governments to speed up inoculations as much as possible.

Vietnam starts reopening schools after year-long pandemic closure

More than 17 million Vietnamese students were due to return to school on Monday for the first time in about a year, the health ministry said, as authorities announced plans to start vaccinating children from as young as five against COVID-19. The Southeast Asian country lifted many of its coronavirus curbs in October, but almost all students had been confined to taking online classes since early last year.

Hong Kong reports record daily high of 351 coronavirus cases

Hong Kong reported 351 cases of coronavirus on Saturday, a record daily high since the outbreak of the pandemic, further pressuring the government's "dynamic zero-COVID" strategy as other major cities opt to live with the virus. Health Secretary Sophia Chan said at a news conference she expects cases to rise "exponentially" following the Lunar New Year holiday due to an increase in family and social gatherings and appealed several times for people to stay indoors.

Britain reports COVID cases and deaths fell in last week

Britain reported 54,095 COVID-19 cases and 75 deaths in its daily official data on Sunday, with the seven-day figure for both falling compared with the week before. In the last week, infection numbers were down 5%, while deaths fell by 7% on the seven days before.

WHO chief says discussed collaboration on COVID origins with Chinese premier

The head of the World Health Organization said on Saturday he had discussed with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang the need for stronger collaboration on the origins of COVID-19, a subject of controversy that has strained Beijing's relations with the West. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has previously pressed China to be more forthcoming with data and information related to the origin of the virus.

Russia says India approves one-shot Sputnik Light COVID vaccine

India has given regulatory approval to Russia's one-shot Sputnik Light COVID-19 vaccine after it authorized Russia's main vaccine - the two-dose Sputnik V - last year, the Russian Direct Investment Fund said on Sunday. Sputnik Light, the first component of the Sputnik V vaccine, can be used as a booster shot with other vaccines, RDIF said.

S.Korea surpasses 1 million total COVID cases with daily record

South Korea on Sunday surpassed one million cumulative COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began, as health officials reported a daily record of 38,691 new infections driven by an Omicron variant outbreak. South Korea saw its first confirmed COVID-19 case on January 20, 2020, and soon became the first country outside China to battle a major outbreak.

U.S. coronavirus deaths surpass 900,000, driven in part by Omicron surge

The coronavirus pandemic reached a grim new milestone in the United States on Friday with the nation's cumulative death toll from COVID-19 surpassing 900,000, even as the daily number of lives lost has begun to level off, according to data collected by Reuters. The latest tally marks an increase of more than 100,000 U.S. COVID-19 fatalities since Dec. 12, coinciding with a surge of infections and hospitalizations driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant of the virus.

Japan to consider early approval for Shionogi COVID pill, says PM Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday the government would consider granting conditional early approval for the oral COVID-19 treatment being developed by Shionogi & Co Ltd. Kishida told a televised parliamentary committee meeting that provided the drug's safety and efficacy are confirmed by clinical trials "we would like to review it promptly".

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)